If you’re like me, you probably have a load of things on your plate. You are constantly running around either for your kids or for your job. Finding time to complete some of those menial tasks is typically not possible.

You find yourself forgetting or just skipping doing some of those items that are easiest to actually execute.

On this week’s episode I dig into an awesome automation tool that you should check out to jumpstart your productivity.

IFTTT (If This Then That)

IFTTT (If This Then That) is a service that allows you to integrate various online tools and solutions to execute particular actions that mean something in YOUR life.

You’ll learn what it is, how it is structured, and what benefit it could provide you in your hectic life. You’ll hear how it can be implemented to automate some of those tasks you find yourself doing over and over again. You’ll also discover really cool ways that other people are using the tool to gain more free time to do the things they love.

5 Things I Learned

In this week’s 5TIL (5 Things I Learned) you’ll hear about...

1. A really cool app for kids that provides news and current events without all of the horrific headlines found on traditional news websites. (Check it out here)

2. A piece of plastic that you can use to get over your addiction to your phone. It’s a real thing and it’s gaining steam on Kickstarter....really. (Check it out here)

3. A ridiculously cool technology included as part of the new NBA 2K15 game. Now you can REALLY get in the game. Their new face-scan technology will scan your face using the console’s camera and then render your (damn near) exact likeness in the game itself. You’ll be runnin’ and gunnin’ with Kevin Durant in no time. (Check it out here)

4. An incredibly innovative piece of technology being offered on Kickstarter that may change the way you record things in your life. This drone/GoPro/smartphone/everything else cool in this world solution is something you have to check out. If you are one of those crazy people that jump off cliffs for fun, this is for you. (Check it out here)

5. Emerging news about the (unwanted) flexibility of the new iPhone 6 Plus. (Check it out here)

As usual, thanks for being as awesome as you are. If you have an idea for the 5TIL, leave a comment below or send me a note on Twitter at @CrazyDadLife.

The post CDL 028 – Using IFTTT to Jumpstart Your Productivity appeared first on Crazy Dad Life.

People ask me all the time how I balance family, career, and my online platform. They ask what a typical day is like for the parent entrepreneur.

In this episode, I give a glimpse into the “typical” day for a parent entrepreneur. I walk you through the day from hitting your alarm clock to setting it for the next day. Along the way, I identify moments where you can inject energy and attention to your side business.

It’s hard for parents like you to handle all of the responsibilities of family and work while also trying to build something online. A side business is hard work and it’s completely understandable to struggle with everything at once.

Take a look at your day and see where you can build margin to build that side business. See where you can fit a few minutes here and there. You’ll be surprised how all of that time ultimately comes together and you start to see momentum in realizing your vision of success.

Also, this week’s 5 Things I Learned (5TIL) covers:

1. Crazy mom bloggers (literally)
2. Amazon’s new entry into the smartphone market
3. What the NBA might be doing with their logo
4. Libraries fighting back the hands of time
5. The demise of the Computerworld magazine

If you love the content you hear on the show and the message really resonates with you, I’d love to hear your review on iTunes. Head to crazydadlife.com/love and you’ll be able to subscribe to the show and leave that awesome review.

Links in this episode include:

• Story about crazy mom blogger
• Libraries fighting the hands of time
• Subscribe to Crazy Dad Life

As always, keep grinding and let’s work together in building online in our off hours!

The post CDL 019 – A Day in the Life – Parent Entrepreneur appeared first on Crazy Dad Life.

What Social Media Platform Should You Dig Into in the Coming Year?

We are all constantly looking for ways to build our audience and drive traffic to our wonderful websites. The question is, where should you drive that traffic from?

In this week’s episode I discuss my thinking of how I’m planning on using Pinterest more this year.

I’ll wait here as you laugh. “How can you as a ‘Crazy Dad’ have any time to embark on this journey into the nether regions of Pinterest?”

Point taken...more on that later.

I guess you could call it a New Year’s resolution since we are near that time of year...and it’s questionable how long my commitment will last. But, I’m going to give it a go and see what happens.

Here are some of the reasons why I want to explore Pinterest more, why I don’t want to explore it, and how I’m going to set out on this adventure.

Why I Should Get Into Pinterest

Why in the world would I, or anyone, want to get into Pinterest? Check out some reasons why you should!

In a recent study conducted by Shareaholic, Pinterest continued to show growth in the amount of traffic it is driving to websites. In fact, it remains the number 2 source of social media driven traffic.

At the end of the 3rd quarter 2014, Pinterest was pushing 5.5% of the traffic while third place Twitter was only giving websites .88%!

Here is the chart from the Shareaholic study...

A recent Forbes article discusses how Buzzfeed has made a conscious effort to leverage Pinterest more in their online marketing. In this episode I talk about the findings and what it means for you.

There are a number of bloggers out there, yours truly included, that are not using this growing and powerful platform.

Your content lives longer on Pinterest than it does on other platforms like Twitter. This could be huge for your long term strategy for content sharing

The majority of Pinterest users are women. In fact, according to an article on MariSmith.com 80% of Pinterest users are women!

Given the fact I talk “dad stuff” along with online business, this may expose me to a new audience. With that said, I do have quite a large female following (and they are friggin awesome), but this may allow me to reach a new set of folks.

Pinterest users spend time on Pinterest...real time. In the same Mari Smith article this stat stood out to me...”average American Pinterest user spends 1 hour and 17 minutes on the website.” Wow.

According to a Harvard Business School case study on Buzzfeed, removing the Twitter share button and increasing the size of the Pinterest button doubled the shares! Doubled.

Why I Might Not Get Into Pinterest

Ok, everything seems wonderful right? Well, maybe not. Here’s why.

Yes, I have no shame in admitting I don’t know something. I find that to be an admirable character trait by the way.

This is definitely the case with Pinterest. I need to learn more about it in the coming weeks to really see how I can leverage it for my online brand.

I touched on the positive aspects of finding new markets on Pinterest, but there’s also the risk that my content won’t resonate with Pinterest users.

Time continues to mock me every chance it gets. It’s in full blown mock mode at the mere thought of me launching any sort of engagement on another social media platform.

If I engage more on Pinterest, something has to pay the price. Maybe I’ll cut back on working out since I don’t do that anyway.

How Am I Going to Do This?

There has to be a method to the madness...some sort of plan.

I’m going to dig in...

If you are engaged online, you might find yourself feeling a little overwhelmed. I know I do. If you are trying to build a business, stand up a personal website, or just grow your social media engagement, there is no doubt you will ultimately come across one (if not all) of the 7 deadly doubts of building online.

1. You have no shot

You look around and see people with fully built out websites running like well oiled machines. You see beautiful responsive design with functionality you don’t even understand. Then you go back and look at your piddly little blog and naturally feel overwhelmed.

How can you ever get anywhere near the others? You have so much work to do.

WHAT TO DO

Chip away at it. You’re never going to get to the end goal unless you start chipping away a little at a time. Think of a massive tree, it takes time and many chops to knock it down.

The good thing is, EVERYONE has a shot. The online world provides low barrier to entry and a level playing field for all.

2. You won’t be heard amongst all of the noise

There is no doubt there are probably thousands of people in the same niche you want to pursue. If you need proof, take a look at the business section of iTunes podcasts and you’ll see an over abundance of entrepreneur interview podcasts. The market is saturated.

There is a tremendous amount of noise online, and it grows louder every single day.

WHAT TO DO

This is an easy one. Be yourself!

It is really the only differentiator you will find. Many people talk about the same thing. It is the way the message is delivered, and the person behind the message that truly matters.

3. You are way behind everyone else

You are always going to feel behind. If you have been online for any period of time, you will come across other people that make you feel like you are way behind.

Truth is, you are.

WHAT TO DO

Deal with it.

There is a natural timeline and everyone falls somewhere on that timeline. Some are ahead and some are behind. Just know that you are somewhere on that line and each day you move further along. Just remember, there are those that are behind you too. That is important.

4. You are moving too slow

You see others launching new products, posting new content every day, and interacting on numerous social media channels. They appear to be everywhere, at all times. Yet you struggle to consistently post a single 300-500 word blog post weekly.

WHAT TO DO

First of all, stop trying to race everyone. As long as you consistently provide value to your audience, everything will be ok. You don’t have to be everywhere at once. Focus on one thing and do it well. Do it at a pace that fits your life and does not cause undue and unhealthy stress.

5. You are doing it all wrong

Contrary to what you might hear, there is no magic formula. You will hear plenty of advice and “expert” tips but there is no particular way you need to do things. You will also hear plenty of success stories that will make you second guess your approach.

WHAT TO DO

Explore your own style. Figure out what works for you. Figure out what you enjoy and what you can get done given your current workload.

Explore different ways to provide value. Are you a writer? Blog more. Are you talkative? Start a podcast. Are you animated and love to act? Go with video.

Find your best delivery method, then learn everything about it and dive into it. Figure out how you can make it work for you, then go with it.

Remember, if it is something you truly enjoy doing, who cares how you do it!

There are a number of people making money online, but there is a vast majority of us grinding away trying to figure it out. Don’t feel like you are not worthy just because you are not raking in cash like a select few.

6. You are inferior

You come across all of these amazing people online. It’s natural to feel intimidated and anoint them rock star status.

WHAT TO DO

Remember, these people are just like you. They put on their pants just like you. They have families, they have worries, and they have struggles too. And, they started out just like you.

7. You are lost

What do you do next?

You want to create a blog. You want to start a podcast. You want to sell your product, be a coach, and write a book. You want to develop an app. You get the idea.

You can quickly become overwhelmed with all of the possibilities. While it is a beautiful thing, it can also be a curse.

WHAT TO DO

This goes back to t...

Podcasting is easy right?

Wrong.

I recently celebrated my first year of podcasting on February 24, 2014. Yeah me!!

I’ve learned a tremendous amount over that year. Some good things, and some bad. In this week’s episode I recap my year and let you know what to expect in your first year of podcasting.

What Should You Expect from Podcasting

Here are some things I’ve learned in my first year of podcasting

• It’s damn hard...true story
• You get to meet some really awesome people and join a sweet little community in the online world
  • Here are some podcasts that I was honored to be a guest
  • The Empowered Podcast with Ellory Wells
  • Starve the Doubts with Jared Easley
  • Co-Host Episode of Starve the Doubts – Interviewing Jaime Tardy of the Eventual Millionaire
  • Beginner Internet Business (BIB) Podcast with Jonathan Taylor
  • The Life of Now with Greg Barth
  • StartupDad HQ with Joel Louis
• Discover that a lot of people still have no clue what a podcast is
• It’s a lot of fun!
• Just like blogging, you have to work to build an audience
• And the biggest finding...I’m going to keep doing it! (that could be a good thing or bad thing to you)

5 Things I Learned (5TIL)

Also, in this week’s episode I discuss the following in the 5TIL

1. How to Sell Snow – really
2. Brilliant marketing where you tell people to go somewhere else
3. Judge Judy is a boss
4. What Twitter is doing about trolls and ongoing abusive behavior
5. A sweet little app for taking pictures of documents and saving it as a PDF (TinyScan)

If you have something for the 5TIL, send me an email at [email protected].

The post CDL 042 – What to Expect in Your First Year of Podcasting appeared first on Crazy Dad Life.